One of the most time-honoured forms of communication and
knowledge transfer is the narrative: The earliest abstract philosophical concepts were
conveyed as allegorical accounts, either for the purpose of education or debate and a
scientific tradition was built around the testing of the premises which either supported
or attacked the truth and validity of the implicit arguments made by these stories. Few
would question the relevance of the case study, the modern equivalent of the allegory, as
a basis for formulating hypotheses for further (quantitative) research, but many would
contend, as Matthew Miles (1979) did in an Administrative Science Quarterly article titled
'Qualitative data as an attractive nuisance' that research based upon case study
was unlikely to transcend story-telling.

What is a case study?

In general, a case study is an empirical inquiry which:

investigates a contemporary phenomenon within its
real-life context: when

the boundaries between phenomenon and context are not
clearly evident; and in which

multiple sources of evidence are used.

Case studies are only one of many ways of doing social
science research, with experimentation, observation, surveys and archival information (as
mentioned above) each suited to a certain type of research problem, degree of experimenter
control over events and historical/contemporary perspective and focus.

What are case studies? By design, case studies usually take
as their principal subject selected examples of a social entity within its normal context.
At the simplest level, the case study provides descriptive accounts of one or more cases,
yet can also be used in an intellectually rigorous manner to achieve experimental
isolation of one or more selected social factors within a real-life context. Despite the
popular misconception that case studies are limited to qualitative analysis they can use
both qualitative and/or quantitative information.

The nature and implementation of international business
policy as changed as quickly as conditions in the international business environment have
changed. International business is a small community which tends to learn very quickly
from experiences in other parts of the world, and therefore requires an intuitive,
imaginative approach to information collection, generation of alternative strategies and
decision making. Unfortunately, we can't acquire either of these two qualities through
reading texts or learning to manipulate quantitative models, but we can hopefully learn to
recognise similar patterns from the experiences of others: In this course we will rely
heavily upon the use of examples and case studies to illustrate learning points and
situations. Since these cases are drawn from real-life, the quality of the ultimate
solutions may not be ideal or universally applicable: It is up to the student to view each
situation critically.

A recommended case study methodology

1.) Read the case

This may sound a bit obvious, but not everyone appears to do
this. A quick skim through the case and attached exhibits provides an overview of the
structure of the case and will hopefully suggest the nature of the problem. Case writers
tend to follow an unwritten convention that the problem should not be hidden in the middle
of the case and usually the main issue is broached on the first half of the first page, or
the last half of the last page.

It is also useful to identify the key actors in order to
determine if interpersonal strains are likely to be an important dynamic of the case. This
is particularly important in an international case where issues of cultural disparity may
be particularly relevant.

Once the background of the case has been determined it is
necessary to read through the case very carefully (yes, including all of the exhibits)
considering the important contextual detail which is carefully distributed throughout the
case. The case authoring process tends to encourage the writer to remove unnecessary
detail, so it is unlikely that anything may be safely ignored. This may be especially true
with respect to the exhibits. When financial information is included in the exhibits it is
usually prudent to perform at least a rudimentary analysis of the numbers.

2.) Clearly identify the problem.

Every case study has at least one major strategic problem.
In some cases the lecturer may choose to focus the case analysis on one particular
problem, significantly simplifying the task. Otherwise, the student needs to identify and
qualify the critical problem or issue.

Students should be aware that certain cases tend to suggest
a problem which is itself symptomatic of a more fundamental underlying problem. If a
sailor identifies water in the bottom of a boat as a problem, bailing is indicated. If the
underlying problem is a large hole in the bottom of the boat, bailing might be a rather
futile solution.

Looking past the symptomatic solution it is necessary to
consider the inter-relation of the issues in the case. Quite often problems are complex,
and several sub-issues need to be addressed before the main problem can be answered.
Generally speaking, these may be categorized as critical success factors. Critical success
factors are the particular points which must be addressed in order for an eventual
solution to be successful. In the case of Eurotunnel, for example, critical success
factors in the construction phase might have included timely completion, sticking to a
fixed budget, government support and technical feasibility. The eventual performance of
the construction phase is then judged by these criteria.

Critical success factors might also be expressed as
objectives. This is especially relevant if a solution requires two different parties to
agree a common set of terms - such as in the case of a joint venture. The best solution is
the one which matches the two sets of objectives most efficiently.

Identifying critical success factors or objectives is
important as they will create a type of scorecard which may be used to assess the
different proposed solutions. Without this critical step completed it is very difficult to
decide when the analysis is complete.

4.) List alternative solutions

Very seldom does a business problem come with a single
'correct' solution. More likely, there are a range of possible solutions, each of which
promises a different set of advantages and disadvantages. One of the things which makes
business research interesting is that various parties will rank these alternatives in a
different order, and there is usually a long and sometimes emotive discussion before any
consensus can be reached. Ultimately, only one alternative is chosen, so it is never quite
clear if other alternatives would have worked out better.

Alternatives must be mutually exclusive. If it is possible
to combine two options then they violate this condition, and never were really
alternative. For example, Gordon Geko Holdings plans to open a new production facility in
the Hoosian Republic. Its alternatives for entry are: Direct investment in a wholly-owned
subsidiary; an equity joint venture with the Minister of Defence's brother; or direct
investment (as above) with sales through a local retail chain. The first two alternatives
really are alternative - it is impossible to do both. the first and the last share a
common element, and therefore are not really alternatives. The last is an elaboration of
the first alternative.

Even if certain alternatives seem obvious, it is dangerous
to stick with these few. Quite often a competitor (or worse, a colleague) will come up
with an alternative which was less obvious and therefore left out of the analysis.
Producing alternatives is similar to brainstorming - the objective is to produce as many
alternative solutions as possible. Try to formulate possible solutions - not the best
solution, but as many possible solutions as you can.

Example one illustrates listing of alternative solutions:

Example one

Problem: The Phantasian Government has increased the
royalty rate on copper concentrate produced in the company's mine, making production only
marginally viable.

Alternatives

Threaten to close operations

Reduce operations so that the net royalty payment remains
the same

Provide financial support to the Phantasian opposition
party, and hope for an early vote of non-confidence

Bribe the Minister of Mines and Energy

:

:

Do nothing

Remember, at this stage, it's quantity, not just quality
which counts. Don't rule out any possibility yet. Once you have listed all of the possible
alternative solutions, list the advantages and disadvantages of each. Example two
illustrates this:

Example two

Problem: The Phantasian Government has increased the royalty
rate on copper concentrate produced in the company's mine, making production only
marginally viable.

Alternatives

Advantages

Disadvantages

Threaten to close operations

* Will alert the Phantasians of
the consequences of their decision without forcing a shut-down

Provide financial support to
the Phantasian opposition party, and hope for an early vote of non-confidence

* May result in royalty reduction
if opposition wins

* Loss of goodwill

* Increased political risk

* Against company policy

Bribe the Minister of Mines and
Energy

* May result in royalty reduction

* Against law in host country

* Against law in home country

* Against company policy

* We might get caught

::

Do nothing (always an
option!)

* No additional negative
consequences

* We would have to live with
increased royalties

Some alternatives may easily be ruled out. Alternative four
in the example above may be immediately withdrawn from consideration because it violates
certain conditions which are distinctly infeasible, narrowing the field. Some alternatives
may be dropped if they offer the same degree of disadvantage, but less advantage than a
similar alternative. By removing infeasible and sub-optimal alternatives, the field may be
narrowed to a few good alternatives. These may be considered at greater length, perhaps
using quantitative methods of analysis such as simulation and one alternative ultimately
chosen.

5.) Matching theory and case

This is not really a stage of case analysis, but rather an
underlying theme.

Often, certain methods of analysis covered in the text or
readings may be suggested. Try to fit these into your analysis where practical, but don't
limit yourself to copying a model out of the text - try to adapt the material to fit the
case - not vice versa!

6.) Select an alternative and draw conclusions

Once alternatives have been fully explored, infeasible and
sub-optimal ones ruled-out, it is necessary to select one of the surviving alternatives.
Quite often the choice is simple and intuitive, however there are often two or three good
alternatives which appear to be equally good. The choice may require a closer look at the
decision criteria, and there are several ways of doing this, either formally or
informally.

A decision grid may be used to match the alternatives with
the decision criteria- either critical success factors or objectives. The decision grid
applies a weighting (for example, a scale of 1 to ten) to each of the combinations of
alternative and criteria to assess the 'goodness of fit' of each relationship. The
weighting is usually subjectively derived, or in plain English, it is a guess. The
attractive feature of this type of model is that the guesses, or assumptions, are made
explicit and therefore provide a starting point for further discussion.

A further embellishment of this type of model requires that
the objectives are given a weight in order to compensate for relative importance. For
example, if one objective, say objective "B" is roughly twice as important as
another (Objective "A") the relative weightings reflect this difference. In
Example 3, the first alternative scores 2, 1 and 2 respectively for each of the
objectives. To derive the total weighted score in the first alternative we calculate:

2(.25) + 1(.45) + 2(.30) = 1.55

Example 3 illustrates the relatively low attractiveness of
any of the proposed alternatives.

Example 3

: A decision grid - matching fit
of objectives

Objective

Alternative

(weighting in brackets)

"A"(.25)

"B"(.45)

"C"(.30)

Total
weightedscore

(1 is low, 10 high, X impossible)

Threaten to close operations

2.00

1.00

2.00

1.55

Reduce operations so that the net royalty payment remains
the
same

5.00

3.00

3.00

3.50

Provide financial support to the Phantasian opposition
party, and hope for an early vote of non-confidence

6.00

1.00

3.00

2.85

Bribe the Minister of Mines and Energy

9.00

4.00

X

Impossible

:

:

Do nothing

1.00

2.00

1.00

1.45

Recommendations should be clear and explicit. While
real-world business problems may occasionally lead to inconclusive analysis, it is usually
unacceptable in a teaching case study to conclude that further analysis is necessary.
Recommendations need to address the original problem, appear feasible and not lead to
further complications. Furthermore, they should be easily implemented.

7.) Implementation

The ultimate test of a strategy is in the implementation. A
brilliant strategy, proposed as a result of a brilliant analysis may be a total flop in
implementation while a pretty mediocre strategy may succeed in the long run because it is
easily implemented.

It is certainly worth including a brief discussion of
implementation strategy in a case analysis. The implementation plan should discuss the
stages of implementation, the timing and sequence of each stage, and hopefully, the
manager who will be responsible at each stage. A basic implementation plan will cover
these points briefly, perhaps noting the stages which are critical for the completion of
future stages, and those which may run concurrently with others. A more complete plan
might include critical path models (CPM) or a Gantt chart. (These are discussed in
operations research programmes and texts)

Conclusion

Case studies provide an excellent opportunity to try out the
diverse and often contradictory set of concepts and techniques studied in Business
Schools. While they tend to discuss problems which have long since been addressed
(successfully or otherwise) the actual solution is of little consequence, since we can
never know if the alternative actually chosen and implemented was the best of those
available at the time, or if the solution was effectively implemented. There is, in
effect, no right answer to a case study, although case analyses may be judged on the basis
of clear structure, logical argument and internal consistency.

This guide is still under construction.
Comments from students and others are encouraged.- email me atschell@unbc.ca